Reliever Matt Bowman is back on the open market. The Mariners announced this evening that the righty elected free agency after clearing outright waivers. It’s the second time in as many weeks for Bowman, who became a free agent on May 31 after being waived by the Diamondbacks.
That could set Bowman up to join his fourth team of the season. He signed a minor league contract with the Twins over the offseason. He tossed six innings without allowing an earned run to earn a major league call midway into April. Bowman pitched five times before Minnesota designated him for assignment and sold his contract to Arizona. The Snakes DFA him after four outings, leading to a minor league deal with Seattle.
Bowman pitched twice for the M’s top farm team in Tacoma. The Mariners selected his contract and plugged him into a game against the White Sox on Monday. Bowman recorded two outs and surrendered a home run to Corey Julks. Seattle designated him for assignment the next day.
The 33-year-old has allowed nine runs across 15 innings between the three teams. He has punched out 10 while issuing seven walks. While that’s not particularly impressive, he hasn’t surrendered an earned run in eight Triple-A innings. Bowman had a solid 2023 campaign in Triple-A with the Yankees, turning in a 3.99 ERA with a strong 51.9% grounder rate over 58 2/3 frames. He should land another minor league contract in fairly short order.